LOS ANGELES — Harvey WeinsteinOnce a movie colossus with immense power in Hollywood was found guilty Monday of Rape and sexual assault of an actress in 2013 but jurors found him innocent of One charge, but could not resolve three others.
Juries deliver the verdict in Los Angeles was his second conviction for sex crime. WeinsteinThe 70-year old was found guilty of a crime nearly three years earlier of Sexual assault and/or rape in New York. This was a backup for Mr. Weinstein in prison, given that New York’s highest court has agreed to review his conviction there.
String of An accusations in The #MeToo movement became a worldwide phenomenon in 2017 when it was launched against a former producer of movies. It has held powerful men from all walks of entertainment accountable for many decades. of Inciting worldwide protests by women who have had their own sexual experiences and committing sexual misconduct of Assault and sexual harassment
Because of Some of The complex dynamics of the verdict and the state’s sentencing laws, Mr. Weinstein Faces the possibility of Between 18 and 24 years behind bars in California — not a maximum of The meaning of life in prison. After completing his sentence, he would be released. in New York City, where he has still 21 years to live in He will go to jail unless he wins his appeal.
Mr. Weinstein Seven counts were brought up in Los Angeles — two of Five for rape of sexual assault — stemming from incidents involving four women from 2004 to 2013. There were nine days of jury deliberations, which was more than the average length. of They discussed the problem they were facing. in Unanimity reached on certain charges They all agreed that Mr. Weinstein I was guilty of three counts — rape, forcible oral sex and sexual penetration — involving an Italian actress who testified that he attacked her in a hotel room in 2013.
Also, they acquitted Mr. Weinstein of One count of A massage therapist can be charged with sexual battery.
The jurors couldn’t decide two charges related to the accusations against Jennifer Siebel Newsom (documentary filmmaker, and wife). of Gov. Gavin Newsom of California. They could not agree on the one charge stemming out of Lauren Young (a model and screenwriter) who claimed she was assaulted at gunpoint by Mr. Weinstein in His hotel room.
While the clerk was reading the lengthy verdict to the jury, most of the room was packed with reporters and attorneys. One point, Mr. Weinstein He took a quick look at the gallery in search of the source. He fell a bit. in After hearing the guilty verdicts in the first three cases, he sat down and did not show any reaction to the four other charges.
The prosecution will decide if they want to try the remaining three charges on which the jury had failed to reach a verdict. Gloria Allred was Gloria Young’s lawyer after the verdict. “100 percent committed to testifying again if she was asked to do so.”
After the verdict, Ms. Siebel Newsom stated that she believed that Mr. Weinstein The information would be kept secret.
“He will spend the rest of his life behind bars where he belongs,” “She said.” in Make a statement. “Harvey Weinstein is a serial predator and what he did was rape.”
After weeks of mixed results, the verdict was reached. of The four accused gave a tearful and often graphic account, as did four other women, who were permitted by state law to testify about similar experiences with Mr. Weinstein in In order to create a pattern of behavior. The fifth accuser was dropped of The case.
More than two weeks have passed since the closing arguments of defense and prosecution lawyers. As the days went by without any verdicts, there was frustration behind closed doors among all those who had hoped that Mr. Weinstein You would be charged with a crime in In a short amount of time. The jurors had asked for a question during the deliberations and requested that the testimony be read back. However, they did not provide any details. of Judge Lisa B. Lench withheld all their inquiries of The Los Angeles Superior Court in It is rare to hide courtroom information in public.
Witnesses described behavior that is familiar to many as it was for women. in The Times has reported allegations for five years of Mr. Weinstein’s behavior.
The prosecution told jurors Mr. Weinstein He was a predator who preyed on women in need. Marlene Martinez was a deputy District Attorney and displayed an image of herself during the closing argument. of The menacing iron trap and the wolf pouncing.
“There is no question that Harvey Weinstein was a predator,” Sie said. “And, like all predators, he had a method.”
Mr. WeinsteinYou can find out more at http://www.amazon.com/?p=238. “titan” of First, the film industry would show interest in a younger woman’s career, she said. He would then arrange for the woman to meet him under this guise. of Her professional development. Prosecutors said Mr. Weinstein They would usually insist that they meet the woman. in His suite where he would attack and isolate her.
“Confined within those walls, victims were not able to run from his hulking mass,” Sie said.
For Mr. Weinstein His accusers were portrayed as potential opportunists, who consented to sex with the producer for a means of Becoming ahead in Hollywood, only to be embarrassed later by these encounters in Licht of The seismic shift in They did not say that they were harmed. The lawyers agreed.
Alan Jackson, a defense lawyer said that the matter came down to trusting the women in his closing arguments.
“‘Take my word for it’ — five words that sum up the entirety of the prosecution’s case,” Jackson stated. “Everything else was smoke and mirrors.”
He acknowledged the accusers’ emotional distress as real, but said it was the result of Hindsight is not always the best thing. of They have extensive experience dealing with transactions of Sex in Hollywood.
“I don’t know how to say it more gentle than this, but fury does not make fact,” He said. “Tears do not make truth.”
This was a sign of something. of a departure from the defense’s tenor earlier in It was a trial. Cross-examinations revealed that the attorneys had made a concerted effort to question the women over discrepancies. in They can access their accounts.
Mark Werksman (another) of Mr. Weinstein’s lawyers, didn’t hesitate to use blunt, even derogatory, language in The accusers are described.
He said that Ms. Siebel Newsom was at one time. “just another bimbo who slept with Harvey Weinstein to get ahead,” It elicits gasps.
Ms. Siebel Newsom claimed that she was raped and beaten by Mr. Weinstein in 2005 in His Beverly Hills hotel room, where he met her for a career discussion. He said that she’d tried to overlook the whole incident for several years. “a way of putting away my sadness, my fear, my trauma, so I could move forward with my life.”
Her two days of Witnesses attracted the biggest crowds of The trial lasted for months at the Los Angeles courthouse. Governor Newsom in the building during his wife’s appearance but not in The courtroom.
In her post-jury verdict statement, Ms. SiebelNewsom attacked the defence lawyers’ approach to the case.
“Throughout the trial, Weinstein’s lawyers used sexism, misogyny and bullying tactics to intimidate, demean and ridicule us survivors,” Sie said. “This trial was a stark reminder that we as a society have work to do. To all survivors out there — I see you, I hear you, and I stand with you.”
Prosecutors, Mr. Weinstein’s defense team walked briskly out of The courtroom was passed by reporters. Paul Thompson (a deputy district Attorney) declined to comment on the matter as it was still open. On Tuesday, lawyers will return to argue special findings related to some of These are the numbers.
George Gascón, the district attorney of Los Angeles County, in A statement was made praising the women who gave evidence. “extraordinary bravery” He said that he was hopeful for partial verdicts “bring at least some measure of justice to the victims.”
However, he was disappointed with the final result. “They deserve better than what the system has given them,” He said of Women
The #MeToo advocates hoped to see another Mr. Weinstein, in They say it is to boost confidence among women who have for too long been ignored by the power structures that discredit their claims. M. Weinstein This has accelerated the growth of #MeToo. The movement was founded in its initial form by Tarana Burch in 2006. To seek justice for Black women who have suffered from sexual abuse.
A number of lawyers representing victims of sexual abuse said that the jury has not yet reached a decision about three matters. of The seven charges, any guilty verdict for Mr. Weinstein This was significant.
“Hung juries can be complex,” Michelle Simpson Tuegel is an attorney who represented victims of Sexual abuse. Her guilty verdict she said. “shows that the defense’s old-fashioned strategy of blaming and shaming the victims can backfire in the post #MeToo era.”
Supporters stated that future trials would be a success. of The movement was not based on any one legal battle. The results were not surprising. of closely watched celebrity trials — such as the legal duel between the actors Amber Heard and Johnny Depp that riveted the internet this spring — might seem like barometers, supporters point to deeper structural changes that #MeToo has inspired.
“#MeToo as a movement and an inspiration really has never been about one single individual, no matter how powerful,” Fatima Gossgraves, president and chief executive of the National Women’s Law Center. “This movement doesn’t begin and end with him.”
Brooks Barnes Jonah E. Bromwich Contributed reporting
